Along time ago there was only really one way to lift and most body builders didn’t switch their routines up much. 

For example, you would pick a muscle group, pick a weight and usually rep 10-12 times for that muscle. Typically you would repeat this cycle over and over again. Of course, because most bodybuilders were doing it at the time most weight lifters just followed their path and repeated the process.

Nowadays there are certain ways we can train that will lead to custom results. For instance, maybe you want to train to build muscle, or maybe strength training; both require a much different workout regime. One of the most effective custom ways to train is to incorporate supersets. Supersets will save you time, add additional muscle mass, and burn more calories.

Let’s go over some reasons why you should superset…

Superset Workouts For Increase Intensity

If you’re looking to step your workout up and get more intense supersets are a great way to accomplish this. For example, if you’re working out arms and you do straight bar then bicep curls back to back you will stimulate more muscle fibers. Not only will you stimulate more muscle fibers but also you will overload your muscles. This is great if you don’t have a spotter at the gym because you can have a very intense workout by yourself.

Superset Workouts For Breaking Your Plateau

If you’re suffering from a plateau and you’re not getting results super setting could be the best thing for your workout. It will also make things more interesting and challenging if you have only been training straight sets. Some studies suggest that you should be changing your strength workout every 4-6 weeks, and supersets are a great way for you to mix things up. In general, it’s always a good idea to evolve your workout for the most ideal results.

Different Types of Supersets 

There are plenty of variations when doing supersets, leaving you with tons of different ways to stimulate your muscles.

Let’s review the different types of supersets…

Compound Supersets

Since you are using many muscle groups together when doing this superset it is very difficult to perform. An example of this would be lunges followed by squats.

An example workout would look like this:

Day 1: Super set chest & back

Exercise 1: Super set bench press w/ barbell bent rows

Exercise 2: Super set incline dumbbell press w/ chin-ups

Exercise 3: Super set dips w/ barbell dead lifts

Isolation Supersets

Combining two Isolation exercises is a very popular superset used by many professionals today. An example of this would be dumbbell press to dumbbell flies.

An example workout would look like this:

Day 1: Super set Chest with Chest

Exercise 1: Super set bench press w/ dumbell flies

Exercise 2: Super set incline dumbbell press w/ pushups

Exercise 3: Super set dips w/ chest press

Tri-Sets Supersets

Similar to a normal superset however you will be completing three exercises back to back instead of two. An example of this would be dumbbell press to dumbbell flies to bench press.

An example workout would look like this:

Day 1: Super set Chest with Chest

Exercise 1: Super set bench press w/ dumbell flies & then chest press

Exercise 2: Super set incline dumbbell press w/ pushups & then dips

Pre-Exhaustion Supersets 

This superset will target one muscle group, however, one exercise will be isolation and the other will be a compound. An example of this would be flies followed by bench press.

An example workout would look like this:

Day 1: Super set Chest with Chest

Exercise 1: Super set cable flies w/ benchpress 

Exercise 2: Super set dumbbell press w/ incline benchpress 

Post-Exhaustion Supersets

This will be the opposite starting with the compound movement first and then the isolation. An example of this would be bench press followed by flies. 

Opposite Muscle Groups Supersets

This is when you do opposite muscle groups back to back. An example of this would be doing chest and back. This is also commonly referred as a push/pull exercise as well. This is also know, as a compound superset.

An example workout would look like this(Same as above):

Day 1: Super set chest & back

Exercise 1: Super set bench press w/ barbell bent rows

Exercise 2: Super set incline dumbbell press w/ chin-ups

Exercise 3: Super set dips w/ barbell dead lifts

Staggered Supersets

This is when you exercise a large muscle group follow, by a much smaller muscle group between sets. An example of this would be doing quads and then switching to bicep curls between sets to let your quads rest. This is also great for keeping your heart rate elevated and is more ideal, for burning calories but not the best for mass.

An example workout would look like this(Same as above):

Day 1: Super set large muscle group with small muscle group

Exercise 1: Super set bench press w/ bicep curls

Exercise 2: Super set squats  w/ calves

Strength and Cardio Superset

If you were to do a strength exercise follow by a cardio exercise, often times you see this in a lot popular boot camps. This will force your muscles to overload and gain much more strength by doing this type of superset. An example of this would be to do leg extensions and then running on the treadmill.

Supersets for Metabolic Training

Other than being more effective for time, supersets can extremely good for circuit or metabolic training. This will force your body to use its muscles for endurance, which will in turn, burn more calories. Now keep in mind if muscle growth if your number one goal, circuit training is not the most ideal but it will burn more calories during the workout. It’s also important to remember that by doing a superset you will not get the amount of rest that would with a standard routine. For example, if you’re doing back to back supersets your strength will be compromised on the latter part of the superset.

Conclusion

As you can see for the previously mentioned reasons there are many reasons why you should start to incorporate more supersets in your workout. Personally, I would definitely recommend this to a client that was suffering from being in stuck in a plateau as it will assist you moving forward with your workout goals. It’s also a great way to get the most out of your workout if you’re constricted with time as you can accomplish much more. Also by overloading your muscles one after the next you will burn a much larger amount of calories in the allotted time.

-Terry Asher